Reporting Agency

The performance and acceptability of the Nerox™ membrane drinking water filter were evaluated among an internally displaced population in Pakistan. The membrane filter and a control ceramic candle filter were distributed to over 3,000 households.

The world is witnessing the highest levels of forced human displacement on record, leading to people being housed in urban centres and camps. Generally the sanitation needs of these people are initially met by external agencies.

The supply of adequate amounts of safe water for drinking and hygiene during natural disasters or armed conflict can be compromised and is one of the priorities in public health interventions to prevent the spread of disease.

Emergency water trucking (EWT) is typically a short-term, life-saving intervention that is used to cover interruptions in water service or access to sufficient quantities of water to meet survival requirements.

The construction of sufficient latrines for displaced people in rocky, high water-table areas can be a problem. This article describes how shallow trench latrines were trialled after the Pakistan floods, and these proved to be easy to construct and well accepted.